AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Trading Up 6.7% – Time to Buy?

Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) traded up 6.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $274.99 and last traded at $274.35. 1,145,232 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average session volume of 1,742,560 shares. The stock had previously closed at $257.20.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AVAV. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of AeroVironment from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $415.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $378.06.

AeroVironment Stock Up 6.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a current ratio of 5.08. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $287.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $294.61. The company has a market capitalization of $13.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -219.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.23.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.43). The business had revenue of $472.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $466.16 million. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 5.08% and a positive return on equity of 3.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 150.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total transaction of $367,232.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 17,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,359,847.60. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total value of $50,184.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,504,014.48. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 2,710 shares of company stock worth $922,464 in the last three months. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AeroVironment

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in AeroVironment in the 1st quarter worth approximately $225,000. Truist Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 22.1% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 5,610 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,599,000 after purchasing an additional 1,014 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 1.7% in the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 5,900 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,681,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 13.5% during the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,068 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,299,000 after buying an additional 961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in AeroVironment by 25.7% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,650 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $498,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc (NASDAQ:AVAV) is a technology company specializing in unmanned aerial systems (UAS), tactical missiles and precision loitering munitions, electric vehicle charging and scalable energy systems. Headquartered in Monrovia, California, the company develops solutions for defense, public safety and commercial markets. Their offerings include small UAS for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as advanced weapons systems designed to meet the needs of modern military operations.

The company’s unmanned aerial systems portfolio features platforms such as the Raven, Puma and Switchblade series, which are deployed by the U.S.